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Carbon Neutral Greenback Positive

Most auto makers want their cars to be flashy, or at least distinctive, but Subaru and Volkswagen are striving for something a little different. They want their cars to be neutral. Carbon neutral, that is.

Subaru has long espoused green policies, going so far as to make their facility in Lafayette, IN the first auto manufacturing facility with no landfill waste. As they put it, the average daily trash of the typical American family is more than the entire plant sends to landfills with their zero-tolerance reduce, re-use, and recycle policy.

The Japanese car maker also offers an entire line of cars meeting the PZEV (partial zero emissions vehicle) standard, that also qualifies for California's SULEV (super ultra low emissions vehicle) certification.

Now Volkswagen is getting on the green car bandwagon as well. Oh, they've offered their BlueMotion line (offered primarily in Europe), which features low emissions diesel engines, for almost a year now, but in a press release on August 30th they announced that they, too, are actively seeking to reduce the carbon footprint left by their cars.

To this end, they now offer a "carbon calculator" on their website, so that visitors can see their own carbon footprints, and they have joined forces with Carbonfund.org to offset a year of carbon emissions from every new Volkswagen purchased in the United States between the first of September, 2007, and January 2, 2008. After the initial year is over, owners will have the opportunity to continue their carbon offset at their own expense.

Carbonfund.org is a non-profit that tries to find solutions to stop or mitigate climate change. In partnership with them, Volkswagen will help reforest land in the Lower Mississippi Alluvial Valley in northern Louisiana. The valley, abbreviated as LMAV, is a wetland that has been taken over by farmland, and the estimated carbon dioxide reduction gained by planting trees there, in an area to be known as the Volkswagen Forest, is more than 372,000 tons. The reforestation project will also help the environment by restoring native trees to the area, providing a safe haven for local wildlife, and making the water safer and cleaner.

In addition to this carbon offset program, Volkswagen and Carbonfund.org will be engaging similar solutions during a vehicle test drive program at the Teva Mountain Games, and will also be working together on a "Clean Diesel" marketing tour, designed to educate consumers about Volkswagen's commitment to alternative fuels.

As for Subaru, they, too have environmental causes under their wing, including the Greensgrow urban farming project, and the National Gardening Association.

What does this all mean for the consumer? Only that thinking green has more to it than just greenbacks, and sometimes going neutral can be a step forward.